


To discover memories.

by RussianSunflower3



Series: Sunflower's Yamaguchi week 2015 [2]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Child logic, Child speak, Day 2, Gen, Kindergarten, Messy Art Projects, Plans For The Future, Tsukki//Childhood, Yamaguchi Week 2015
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-09
Updated: 2015-11-09
Packaged: 2018-04-30 18:35:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,605
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5174795
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RussianSunflower3/pseuds/RussianSunflower3
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Yamaguchi was the quiet child in his kindergarten class, often hiding from the others.<br/>One day, the class project was to make a collage of what they wanted to be in the future.</p>
<p>10 years later, he and Tsukishima re-discover Yamaguchi's kindergarten project file.</p>
            </blockquote>





	To discover memories.

The kindergarten class was noisy and crowded. Not for any special reason, but just because that’s how kindergarten classes were. At the very back of the room, in his little blue sweater and baggy black pants, a shy child hid behind a rack of dress-up costumes. He was tall for his age and stuck out like a sore thumb, his messy brown hair drawing attention with its weird moss tinted shade, and his gangly appearance, like he’d been stretched out forcefully, was usually a talking point amongst the other children. 

Yamaguchi clutched the plush otter in his arms a little closer, hoping that his hiding spot this time was good enough to remain undiscovered. He wasn’t so lucky when the teacher crouched down in front of the costume rack and pushed them aside. He giggled lightly at the bright smile she gave him, asking him if he was exploring magical caves in the mountains of far away countries. He liked the teacher, she was nice.

“Nu-uh, I’m in a fowest looking for faiwies!” The empty space where a tooth was missing gave him a lisp, accompanying his childish pronunciation with an unintentional whistle. He proudly displayed his gap with a grin, pleased when the teacher asked what kind of fairies he was looking for.

“Tiny ones! They wear fwowers for dresses, and have widdle crowns made of acorn caps!” His teacher giggled softly, amused by the image and captured by Yamaguchi’s imagination. He was a special child, that was for sure. Someone who would go on to do great things. 

The fun laughter between them was suddenly interrupted by harsh snickering from behind. The two oldest boys in the class were directly laughing at him. Yamaguchi directed his gaze to the floor, shuffling back as far as he could so that he was crouched in the dark corner behind the costume rack. His teacher had stood up straight to address the boys in trouble, leaving the curtain of light she had created to close. In his lonely little corner, Yamaguchi pressed his face into his plush otter, fighting off emotions like sadness and anger. 

His mama had told him they were bad feelings to have towards someone else. It was only once free play was over that Yamaguchi emerged from his cavern to sit at the seat he’d been assigned. His table was made up of mostly girls, but he wasn’t complaining. The girls were nice; they spoke to him and complimented his drawings. On a good day, they’d play with his hair too. Yamaguchi was pleased to be one of the youngest if it meant he always got put in groups like this. The teacher at the front of the class clapped her hands lightly, addressing the children with a kind smile.

“Today, we’re doing a messy art project! I want you to make a collage – a collection of art – for what you want to be when you grow up!” Her kindness and beaming smile infected the kindergartners with glee and they scrambled for pieces of paper, crayons, glitter glue, and all many of craft bits. Yamaguchi let the others at the table collect what they wanted first. 

His mama told him that being patient was kind, and that he’d be a gentleman someday. If he was naughty and selfish, he’d end up being rude and mean like dada had been. Mama always told him that dada had gone away for a long time because he was very badly behaved. Yamaguchi knew. He’d watched the police men take his dada away. He’d waved from his bedroom window but his dada hadn’t waved back. That hadn’t been very nice and it hadn’t made Yamaguchi happy. He realised what it was he wanted to draw, and picked up a yellow crayon. He could hear the teacher walking around, peering over shoulders as she gave suggestions and praised the young ones.

“Mio, try to leave some paint left for the others. I don’t think you need more anyways, it’s very beautiful how it is~. Oh, Benjiro, that’s a very lovely dog! I’m sure you’ll be the best vet in Miyagi. Akira, I don’t think elephants have trunks that end...” Yamaguchi sat still as she came over to the table he was at, looking at his drawing with a small burst of pride. He thought it was beautiful.

“Yamaguchi? What’s this?” The teacher crouched down and gestured for him to pass the paper up. She was looking at with an unreadable expression.

“It’s very nice... But I’m afraid I don’t know what it is. What do you want to be when you’re older, Yamaguchi?” He shuffled in his seat in apprehension. Had he got the task wrong? Was his drawing very bad? 

“I- I want to be a friend who makes everyone happy...” His shyness dispersed into a bright grin when the teacher put it back on his desk and placed a supportive hand on his shoulder.

“I think that’s the best thing anybody could want to be~.”

5 years later, he met Tsukishima Kei in the street as the blond called his bullies –and probably him too- ‘pathetic’. Another 5 years on, and Yamaguchi was spread lazily across his bedroom floor in the summer haze, sipping a juice box. Tsukishima was pulling books off the shelf and placing them into a box for safety. The brunette had promptly decided that his room needed redecorating and had enlisted Tsukishima’s help. However... 

“Yamaguchi, the point of me _helping_ is that you’re supposed to do most of it.”

“But it’s so hoooooot... I’m melting! You’re fine; you have your cold, icy heart to keep you cool!” A thin comic from his bookshelf was thrown with just enough force for it to land on Yamaguchi’s head and he laughed unrestrained, knowing that Tsukishima was softly smirking without even looking. They were just that close.

“Oi, what’s this...?” 

“Hm?” He lifted the comic book of his face to look over at Tsukishima with one eye. In his hands was a navy blue folder covered in little doodles and stickers. It peaked his interest and he dragged himself from the floor with theatrical sound effects that made Tsukishima roll his eyes. Yamaguchi was so dramatic in the heat. The sweat soaking his shirt as it clung to his back said something about the temperature though. He handed the folder over and watched as Yamaguchi turned an interesting shade, not from the heat, but from the item in his hands.

“I- I thought Mama had thrown this out _long_ ago...”

“That doesn’t answer my question. What is it?” 

“A-aha, it’s my kindergarten craft file... All the art projects we did...” Yamaguchi opened the page with such gentleness, as if the old file was going to fall apart with the action. He laughed as he pulled out the first item, a butterfly mask covered in buttons and shredded paper with splatters of paint all over it. He held it up to Tsukishima’s face with a giggle, sticking his tongue out. 

Golden eyes narrowed at him through the eye slits, but there was too much mirth swimming in their depths for the glare to be threatening. The quivering edge of his lips that very nearly turned upwards was a dead giveaway that Tsukishima was highly amused with his friend’s antics.

“It suits you, Tsukki!”

“Tch. Just show me what else there is. I’m interested.” They spent the next half hour emptying the file as they sat on the floor, and Yamaguchi revelled in the fact that he was making Tsukishima laugh more in this small time than he usually did in a week. As he pulled out a large piece of paper, Yamaguchi’s heart swelled and he smiled, genuinely moved to almost tears.

“Yamaguchi?”

“S-Sorry, Tsukki~! I just found something very important.” The blond tilted his head to the side, but didn’t verbally question it. If it was too important to share, he would respect Yamaguchi’s wishes. He wasn’t surprised in the slightest, however, when the freckled boy passed it over. Tsukishima squinted as he read the title at the side, messy from young age.

“What I... What I want to be when I grow up?”

“Mhm~! It was a class project! We had to draw what we wanted to be when we got older. I think I misunderstood though... Aha~...”

“Shut up, Yamaguchi.” He cut the ashamed ramble of with three swift words and was rewarded with Yamaguchi’s playful pout and the sight of his tongue poking out rudely. It was all in jest, so Tsukishima simply quirked an eyebrow. He glanced down at the paper in hand. The background hadn’t been touched, and there were simply two stick figures in yellow crayon, with a smiling face above one of them and a speech bubble coming from the other.

“... I don’t get it. What job is this?”

“I told you I misunderstood the task.” It took a few seconds more squinting and turning the page slightly before it clicked in his clever mind and his eyes widened whilst his lips formed an ‘oh’ shape.

“You wanted to make someone happy.” Yamaguchi laughed, the cowlick on top of his head dancing with the motion.

“I wanted to be a _friend_ that made people happy~.” When he looked back up at Tsukishima, he could see an honest, innocent smile on his face.

“I think you did that, Yamaguchi. On a greater scale than you’d ever imagined.” Packing things up for redecorating was forgotten as the two friends spent the rest of the summer afternoon laughing over Yamaguchi’s kindergarten projects and Tsukishima’s elaborate stories from his own classes.


End file.
